gibb - Hauptgebäude

A large, distinctly well-structured building that still looks modern today, with plans signed by the renowned Bernese architect Hans Brechbühler. However, the concept and design may not have been Brechbühler’s own, but rather those of his young colleague Max Jenni, who later also took charge of site management within the firm. The project emerged from an architectural competition in 1935 in which eighty architects took part. Today, the Trade School, together with the SUVA Building, ranks among the iconic pioneering buildings of the New Objectivity in Bern.

A five-storey, elongated rectangular building on stilts. The main structure is characterised by a strict orthogonal façade grid and is flanked by two cubic side wings housing the stairwells. On the flat roof, which serves as a terrace, stands a drawing hall that appears as a sculptural structure. Reinforced concrete construction. The ground floor was originally almost entirely open; in 1977, a cafeteria was installed, also designed by Hans Brechbühler. Inside, the functional and clear floor plan is impressive: access to the classrooms is via a spacious central corridor conceived as a ‘Rue intérieure’, whilst the staircases are located in the cubic side wings. Beneath the school building, situated on a plateau, lie the training workshops (No. 1A), which are designed as steel-and-glass structures with parallel pitched roofs. On the north-eastern side, a green area with trees separates the school grounds from Lorrainestrasse. The embankment in the south-west, near the bridgehead of the Lorraine Bridge built in 1930 (now used as a car park), was constructed against the architect’s wishes. Thanks to its prominent location, the vocational school has a striking visual impact from a distance and thus serves as the visual gateway to the Lorraine district. The sloping orientation, which was adopted from the previous site (a flag factory), creates an impressive spatial effect.